


when the skies all open, we'll still be singing

by aprilmay (AnnaHay), Daydreaming_In_The_Void



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Because this is self indulgent, Canon-Typical Violence, Gen, How Do I Tag, Lich Taako, Taako Remembers, also taakos a lich, and his memories are still faulty, found family is great, his friends don't tho, i make many mistakes i don't catch, if you wanna beta please tell me, lup will be released early, no beta we die like men, rewritten from something missing, taako remembers early, taakos smarter than he thinks, tags will be added as they become relevent
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-02
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:33:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25024732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnnaHay/pseuds/aprilmay, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daydreaming_In_The_Void/pseuds/Daydreaming_In_The_Void
Summary: Taako always felt like he was part of a whole, and the other piece was missing. He chalked it up to the depression and didn’t stop to think about it. That was, until he became part of a secret organization to save the world, and remembered more than he should’ve.Now he just had to undermine Lucretia (And mess with her, of course), find Barry, find Lup, and avoid suspicion from Magnus and Merle. All the while dealing with faulty memories.Shouldn’t be too difficult, right?
Relationships: Barry Bluejeans & Taako, Magnus Burnsides & Merle Highchurch, Magnus Burnsides & Merle Highchurch & Taako, Magnus Burnsides & Taako, Merle Highchurch & Taako
Comments: 30
Kudos: 101





	1. Like Brothers

His day started normally and ended on the moon. It ended with him making some new friends. (They weren’t new though, were they?) It ended with him remembering his family.

But it started in a tavern with a human fighter named Magnus and a dwarven cleric named Merle, and they laughed and talked with each other as they waited on Merle’s cousin to arrive.

He’d promised them a job. The last job they’d ever need, in his words. He’d heard that promise hundreds of times before and it had never been true. But hey, maybe this time, right?

The door slammed open and a shorter-than-average dwarf stepped inside, looking back and forth between tables, finally settling on theirs. A timid fighter stepped in behind him, fiddling with the straps of his armour. He didn’t look for them, sitting across from them without a second glance. The dwarf sat with a grunt, thumping his fists on the table.

“You the three I’m looking for?” His voice was gruff and raspy.

“Yes!” Magnus looked like an excited puppy. “You are Gundren Rockseeker, right?”

“Taako, Magnus, Merle?” The three gave thumbs up in unison. “This is Barry.” Taako waved lazily, tipping the last of his drink into his mouth.

“Hail and well met, Barold.”

“That’s — That’s not my name.”

He shrugged. “Whatever.”

“What’s the job that needs two fighters and two spell casters?” Merle asked, tapping his fingers on the table.

“First, to see if you’re capable, you’ll be driving a waggon to Phandalin. After that, I’ll tell you about the actual job.”

Taako raised a brow, unimpressed. “Driving isn’t, like, the test of the century.”

“There are a lot of dangers on that road,” Barry added, “So the test isn’t driving, unless you’re a bad driver.”

“I have proficiency in vehicles!” Magnus’ eyes sparkled.

“If _you’re_ driving, we’re dead.”

“What the hell do you even mean, ‘proficient’ in vehicles?” Gundren rubbed his forehead.

“All it means is he got a driver’s license.”

“You guys are real fucking weird.”

“Part of the brand, homie.”

“Are you in or not?”

“How much are we getting paid again?”

“Twenty-five gold each for the escort. Much, much more for the other.” Taako grinned, eyes half lidded and leaned forward.

“Like Barold said, these roads are _dangerous_! Twenty-five gold is _hardly_ compensation for the risks!”

Magnus nodded sagely. “Much too dangerous for just twenty-five gold.”

Merle leaned forward. “We could get our arms chopped off! Or our legs! Or our—” Barry coughed, hiding a grin behind his hand.

“Fine! Fine! How much do you want?”

“60.”

“30.”

“55.”

“40.”

“50.”

“45.” Taako flicked his ears, not breaking eye contact as he got two responses — two taps on the table. _That works_.

“When do we leave?”

“Tomorrow.” He stood up. “Meet at the door come morning,” he said, and walked away.

Barry frowned, looking like he was trying to decide whether to follow. He decided on not, as he settled more into his seat.

“You three always work together like that?”

“What do you mean?” Magnus waved over a waiter, getting a refill of some ale.

“I don’t know. You guys seem really in tune with each other.”

Taako shrugged. “Working together is easier than being on your own.” A silence hung over them.

“So…” Barry tapped his fingers on the table. “It was pretty cool how you three communicated through gestures.”

“Thanks, I guess.”

A couple drinks later, any awkwardness they had disappeared. They laughed and talked with each other as if they always had.

As if they were brothers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for taking the time to read! Comments and Kudos always appreciated!


	2. Hugbear

Magnus, Merle and Taako couldn't see Barry and Gundren's wagon in the distance when they set out for Phandalin. It was a boring ride for the hungover trio, the cart full of nothing but mining supplies. Until they found the remains of two dead horses and what used to be Barry and Gundren’s cart.

“Well, looks like shit’s gone south!” Taako poked his head out of the supplies and into the driver’s seat, where Magnus was squinting at the horses.

“What happened here?” Merle stood up, preparing to hop off the cart. Off to the side, Taako spotted some rustling in the bushes, and a tiny figure wielding a bow emerged. A couple more gerblins followed.

“We can ask them,” he said, pointing at the gerblins.

“Gerblins, attack!” the one in front yelled, and they all charged forward, brandishing their weapons in the air.

Merle smote one with a ray of holy fire, leaving the gerblin screaming as he burned. Acting on instinct, Taako raised his hand and shot a ray of frost at that same gerblin, flash-freezing him mid-scream. Magnus stuck his tongue out at the two spell casters and lunged off the cart, slamming his axe into another gerblin, cutting him right in half in the least pleasant way to be cut in half.

The third gerblin looked around at his fallen friends and cringed, firing his bow at Taako and then running away. His shot missed by a couple feet, instead landing in the waggon's canvas, starting a small blaze. Taako waved the others on as he turned to the fire, casting prestidigitation to snuff it out. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Merle throw something into the woods and heard a resounding thunk as it hit.

“Oh, that’s gotta hurt.”

He hopped off the cart, rifling through the gerblins’ loot. A few pieces of gold, a crossbow he gave to Magnus. Nothing interesting. Magnus walked over to the dead horses, laying his hand on one.

“Still warm. This wasn’t long ago.”

Taako straightened his back, putting his hands on his hips as he surveyed the scene. Barry better be fucking okay, he thought, before he frowned. Why was he so worried about a near stranger? Caring about people just got you hurt on the road. No one stayed by you forever and it was better that way.

At least, that was what he told himself.

He was distracted from his thoughts by Magnus lifting up an empty map container, peering inside curiously. “What’d he need a map for? There’s no way he doesn’t know the way to Phandalin.”

“Well, looks like the job’s over. We tried, let’s go back.” Merle dusted his hands off. Taako rolled his eyes.

“You wanna get paid or not?”

Merle perked up. “In that case, let’s go find them!”

Taako’s thoughts drifted back to Barry. He was vaguely aware of someone else saying something to him, but he couldn’t bring himself to focus. There was a weird feeling in his head, almost like a thought was bouncing around his head too fast for him to grasp it. Like there was a word on the tip of his tongue and he didn’t know what it was.

Someone put a hand on his shoulder suddenly. “Taako? You alright?”

He looked up, startled. Magnus was standing in front of him, head cocked to the side. “The gerblins didn’t get you, did they?”

He brushed the hand off, stepping back. “I’m perfectly fine, thanks. What did-- did you want something?”

“Yeah, there’s tracks over there, in the same direction the gerblins were.”

“Well then, what are we waiting for? Let’s go find Barry!”

Magnus gave him a thumbs up and set off, Taako following distractedly. The thought was still bouncing around his head as he walked, not paying any attention to Magnus and Merle’s chatting.

They made “friends” with a gerblin and narrowly avoided getting washed away (well, Taako did. He couldn’t say the same for the other two), and along the way, the feeling began to fade. By the time they fought some more gerblins, the feeling was completely gone.

At least, until they found Barry being used as a hostage. Taako’s heart sank and he narrowed his eyes at the gerblin holding Barry over the edge. He flexed his fingers. The feeling was back full force now.

The gerblin (Yeemo or something) told them that in exchange for Barry, all they had to do was assassinate his employer. Taako quite wanted to assassinate him instead.

Then, a random thought popped in his head.

“Holy shit, is that a churro?” he muttered, nudging Magnus.

Magnus stared at him blankly. “What?” he whispered back.

“Is that--” Taako frowned, struggling to explain himself. “It’s a joke, because--”

“What are you two talking about?” Merle cut in, volume just a little higher than the first two.

“I don’t know, something about churros,” Magnus replied, not even trying to be subtle anymore. “I want churros now!”

Merle rubbed his hands together. “Oh, me too, are we gonna get churros later?”

There was a loud sigh across the room. “Are you guys even listening to me?”

They turned back to the annoyed gerblin.

“Oh, yeah, for sure,” Taako answered. “Murder a guy, report back, we got it.”

Yeemick didn’t look convinced, but waved them on anyways. “I’d suggest you hurry,” he added, some sick playfulness slipping into his tone. “Who knows how long Barry has, hmm?”

Taako wanted to flip him off very much. The looks on Magnus and Merle’s faces matched his thoughts as they headed out.

They passed through the tunnel on the other side of the overpass, hearing some grumbling at the end. They paused at the door.

“So, what’s the plan?” Merle asked.

Magnus shrugged. “I dunno, just wing it?”

“We can tell him there’s someone in his organisation that wants him dead, and if he helps us get Barry Bluejeans back, we’ll tell him who it is,” Taako patted Magnus on the shoulder. “After that, we can wing it.” Magnus gave him a grin.

“Sounds good!” he said, and swung open the door.

Immediately there was a strong scent of dog and the sound of growling.  
“Thirteen, sic the short one!” a gruff voice commanded, and immediately Merle was jumped on by a mass of brown fur and teeth.

Magnus perked up. “A dog!” He glanced at Taako before looking back to Merle. “I have proficiency in animal handling, I can try to befriend it!”

“Just kill it, Magnus!” shouted Merle, trying to hold the dog’s snapping jaws away from his face. Magnus’s face fell.

“But I want a dog!”

“We can get you a dog later,” Taako lied. “As long as you get rid of this one!”

Magnus took a moment to think, before his face brightened again. He grabbed the dog with ease.

And threw it into the fire pit in the center of the room.

Taako whistled, after a short pause. “Have to admit, I wasn’t expecting that.”

“You threw my dog in the fire!”

Oh, right. They were supposed to befriend the guy. Well, failed step one.

Merle stood up, brushing himself off, ignoring the blood on his arms. “Well, then you shouldn’t have had it jump at my ass!” he exclaimed.

The large furry figure across the room frowned. “I don’t think my dog could fit in an ass.”

Magnus put his hands in his hips. “You haven’t seen this ass!”

“I have!” Taako leaned on Magnus. The bugbear-- who he presumed was Klaarg-- looked bewildered. Then he shook his head, snapping his fingers and pointing at Magnus. The dog crawled out of the fire, smoldering, and lunged at Magnus.

This was going on too long, Taako decided. He pulled out his wand, casting charm person with a flick of his wrist. He waited a moment, seeing if the spell had failed, before breathing a sigh of relief as a shining smile split Klaarg’s face.

“Oh, my dear friend, whatever-your-name-is!” he exclaimed, beaming.

“Taako,” he offered dryly, pocketing his wand.

Klaarg nodded. “My dear friend Taako! What can I do for you?”

Taako glanced at the dog still gnawing Magnus’s arm.

“Can you call off your burnt dog?” he asked.

“Oh, of course! Come here, Thirteen!” He whistled. “Come here, boy!”

The dog let go of Magnus and bounded over to Klaarg, tail wagging wildly. Klaarg patted him on the head and the dog closed its eyes, satisfied.

“Thanks,” Magnus said, sitting up.

“What else did you need?” Klaarg asked.

“This is going to be a bit tough to hear,” Taako started, “but one of your employees-- Yeemick, I think-- wants you dead.”

Klaarg frowned. “Are you sure it’s Yeemick? There’s a Yabo that works for me, and he’s always been a pain.”

“Oh, yeah, it’s definitely Yeemick, he was very clear about that.”

Klaarg tapped his fingers to his chin. “I’m sure we can all sort this out if I just call Yeemick over here. It’s probably all a misunderstanding,” he said, walking back to his desk. He pulled a stone of farspeech out of a drawer, tapped it a few times. “Yeemick? Can I see you in my office?”

Merle sighed. “He’s definitely gonna know what’s up.”

“Maybe we can play dead?” Taako suggested.

“Oh, I’m sure there’s no need for that!” Klaarg sat at his desk, clasping his hands together.

There was a bang as the door swung open, the furious face of Yeemick the gerblin appearing. A couple other gerblins spilt into the room after him, wielding a variety of weapons. Lightning-quick, Yeemick shot an arrow from his bow at Klaarg. Taako didn’t have time to blink before Magnus was in front of Klaarg, his shield raised. The arrow plinked off the wood. Klaarg frowned, chair scraping against the stone floor as he stood, stepping onto and over the desk without pause. He marched towards Yeemick, bunching his hands into fists.

Yeemick paled, regretting the life decisions that led him to this moment, and then Klaarg’s fist utterly destroyed him.

The rest of the gerblins posed no challenge for Magnus, Merle, Taako, and Klaarg. They made short work of them and then turned to Klaarg, all now splattered with gerblin blood.

“So…” Magnus cleared his throat.

Klaarg’s face fell. “Looks like you were right, Taako.” He paused, taking a moment to think. “Would you like some tea?” Taako looked at his companions, raising his brow. They shrugged and nodded, and he grinned at Klaarg.

“Sure, but make it quick, my spell only lasts an hour.” Klaarg’s face brightened and he clasped his hands together.

“What would you like? I have some oolong, some green tea, black tea…”

“Oolong sounds great.”

Klaarg began preparing the tea, humming to himself. “So, what was it you needed?”

“Barry Bluejeans. And Gundren Rockseeker, I guess.”

“Oh, yes! I can certainly help you with that. With Yeemick indisposed of, you can grab Barry on your way out.” He sat down, cross-legged, on the soft shag carpet, sipping at his tea. The three heroes joined him. “Gundren, however, is not here. We were hired to capture him for the ‘Black Spider.’”

Magnus choked on his tea. “Like, a real spider?”

Merle patted him on the back. “A real spider’s not big enough to kidnap a guy.”

Magnus nodded, though he wasn’t reassured.

Taako sipped his tea. It was still too hot to drink. He drank some anyways. “Do you know where he is now?”

Klaarg shrugged. “Nope. A cave somewhere, but there’s lots of caves in these parts.”

A mental ping signalled to Taako that his spell was going to run out soon. Setting the cup on the ground by the carpet, he stood up, brushing out the wrinkles in his clothes. Magnus and Merle took the hint and stood too, though Merle downed the rest of his tea first, making a face at the burn.

“Well, Klaarg, we oughta get going,” Merle sighed. “Caves to find and dwarfs to rescue, you know how it is.”

Klaarg nodded knowingly.

“Oh! Before you go, take some fantasy thermoses full of tea with you, to keep you warm on your journey!” he insisted. “There’s also a health potion in there.”

They each grabbed one, clipping them to their belts. Convenient.

Klaarg waved at them wildly as they headed out. “Come by again! I’ll make some cucumber sandwiches next time!”

Taako gave a double thumbs up, grinning.

Once they were out of earshot, Magnus whistled. “Man, Taako, you really charmed the hell out of him. I didn’t know that spell could even do that.”

Taako rolled his eyes to hide the fact that he hadn’t known either. “You’re not a wizard, now are you?”

“And thank god for that.” Taako smacked him on the arm and Merle laughed loudly.

Taako didn’t stop to think about the fuzzy, unsettling, aching feeling of familiarity deep in his chest.

They found Barry in the same place they left him, lying unconscious near the ledge. Taako kneeled next to him, unscrewing his thermos of health potion and tea and tipping it into Barry’s mouth. He coughed, bleary eyes opening slowly.

“Welcome back to the land of the living,” Taako said, helping him sit up.

He groaned. “I don’t feel very alive.”

“Comes with the territory,” said Taako without thinking. He stood up, holding a hand out. “My spell’s gonna run out in a few minutes, we should go.” Barry didn’t question it, simply grabbed his hand and stood, dusting himself off. He grabbed his glasses off the floor, clicking his tongue at the cracks and scratches on them.

They made their way out of the cave with no trouble, chit chatting idly along the way. As they started their cart, which was thankfully untouched by passersby, Taako felt his spell wear off.

“Oh, fuck!” The curse came from deep inside the cave, loud and guttural, and after a moment of silence, he laughed, the others joining in.

It took him a moment to realise that the fuzzy feeling had settled down, his thoughts not racing anymore. Instead, that feeling was replaced by a warm, familiar sense of comfort.

And still, he felt like he was missing something.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments and Kudos always appreciated.  
> Massive thanks to my beta reader, Anna, who’s helped me a ton! You can find her [here!](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnnaHay/pseuds/AnnaHay)


	3. Static

  
The ride back to Phandalin was quiet— both Magnus and Merle had fallen asleep, and Taako was sitting up front with Barry, who was driving the cart.

They sat in silence, mostly, occasionally pointing out something strange in the landscape or sharing looks over Merle’s strange sleep talking.

Unfortunately, this meant Taako had time to think, and process his emotions.

He didn’t know what he felt, if he was honest. About anything. About Barry, about Magnus and Merle, about the weird fuzzy feeling in his head that was so damn persistent.

But the static of almost knowing felt better than the feeling of wrong and blankness he’d had before. It felt like he was on the right track.

The right track to what, he didn’t know.

“You okay?”

Taako was snapped out of his thoughts abruptly by the question, and glanced at Barry. Barry was still watching the road, but looked over every few seconds.

“Yeah, just tired,” he said.

“Me too, bud.” Right on cue, he yawned. “So, how’d you end up here?”

“What do you mean?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. Just… here, I guess. In general.”

Taako exhaled loudly. “Jeez, dude. That’s some existential crisis catalyst shit right there.”

Barry laughed. “Yeah, you don’t have to answer that. I’m just feeling… weird, I guess.”

Taako leaned away from him slightly, eliciting another laugh. “You’d better not throw up on me, Barry.”

“You know, I think that’s the first time you actually used my name.”

“Barold’s more fun,” he said. They were silent for a few moments. “I know what you mean, though.”

“You do?”

“Everything feels… it feels like this isn’t... the first time we... I don’t know. Like deja vu, but extra.” Fuck this, it was too late (or was it early?) for feelings.

Barry nodded, avoiding looking at him. Seemed he didn’t like talking about his feelings either. Which was valid, since this was making Taako feel icky too. Too personal.

“Yeah... it feels like something isn’t right, and I know what it is somewhere deep down, but I can’t quite pinpoint it.”

“Hit the nail on the head there.” He yawned. “Feelings are yuck,” he said, leaning back and closing his eyes. Trusting this near-stranger to not murder him.

He heard Barry laugh quietly, and they rode in silence from then on.

* * *

There was a loud thwack as Barry slammed something onto the tavern table, looking far too excited for a blank piece of paper.

“Well, Barry’s officially lost his marbles,” Magnus declared.

Merle narrowed his eyes. “You woke us up at five in the morning for a blank paper?”

“I— it’s not blank, it’s enchanted. It’s a blood map!” Okay, Barry was definitely too excited.

“It’s too early for fucking blood magic, my dude,” Taako said, feigning a yawn. Sure, he hadn’t gotten his full four hours of trancing in, but he was used to that. He could still function. Though, the same couldn’t be said for Magnus and Merle, he thought. They looked half-dead.

“It’s never too early for blood magic! Also, I think this might be where Gundren is.” He looked at the uninterested party. “And therefore, it’s where your gold is,” he added.

“Great! Whose blood do we need?” Merle immediately looked more awake.

Barry rummaged through his bag. “Rockseeker blood, of which I have a vial of—” he held up a broken vial triumphantly, “—right here!” It took him a moment to register that the vial was empty. “Aw, fuck.”

Merle held up a hesitant finger. “Would a cousin’s blood work?”

Barry immediately perked up again, grinning. “Let’s try it!” He grabbed a fork. Merle immediately regretted his words.

“Hey!” he shouted as Barry leaned over. “At least let me decide where the blood is coming from!” Barry looked disappointed, but handed over the fork.

Taako snorted, trying to cover it up with a cough. It didn’t work, if Merle’s glare was anything to go by.

He held the fork above his hand hesitantly. Barry waved him on impatiently, pushing the blank map towards him. There were a few moments of silence as Merle mentally prepared himself. Magnus decided it was taking too long.

He grabbed the fork and jammed it into Merle’s hand, eliciting a sharp cry.

“ _Fantasy Jesus Christ_ , Magnus!”

“You were taking too long!”

“You could have at least warned me!”

“Then you wouldn’t have let me do it!”

Barry ignored the ensuing argument and dragged the now-bloody piece of paper towards himself. Taako leaned over his shoulder to watch. As the blood seeped into the paper, it did so in certain patterns— forming swirls and lines that resembled a map.

“I think we need more blood,” Taako said, watching the map stop painting itself. Merle groaned and held his hand over the map, letting more drops fall. He glanced over at Barry, who was examining it intently, bright eyed.

“Wave Echo Cave,” he said, pointing at a circled spot on the map.

Dread pooled in Taako’s stomach. Why, he wasn’t sure.

He wasn’t sure of anything these days, it seemed.

“That’s where—” he cut off abruptly. That’s where Gundren was, that’s what he was going to say, but why did it feel like he wanted to say something else?

Like he wanted to find _someone_ else?

Barry faltered for a moment, but nodded, clenching his hands into fists as he leaned over the map, studying it intently.

Taako got a feeling of deja vu. So familiar it was becoming frustrating.

“Yeah, probably,” Barry said.

Magnus patted him on the back, hard, not noticing the somber moods of two of his party members. “Great! Let’s go save Merle’s cousin, get paid, and get some loot along the way!”

“This’ll be a piece of cake!” Merle said.

* * *

  
“This is no longer a piece of cake!” 

Taako glared at Merle and flicked his hand, sending a goop of slime flying towards him. They made it to the cave with no problems, looted a dead man for his shoes at the entrance of the cave, and then proceeded to get ambushed by a slime. 

They took care of it pretty well, except for the part where it exploded and showered them all with gloop. Taako ran a hand over the coat of slime covering his hair, cringing at the stickiness when he pulled away. With a flick of his wrist he cast prestidigitation and the slime disappeared in a sparkle. 

“Ooh, do me next!” Magnus gave him puppy dog eyes. 

Taako sighed and flicked his wand again. Magnus looked ecstatic as sparkles rained into existence around him before slowly fading, taking the mess of slime with them. Merle made intense eye contact with Taako, raising a brow. 

“Oh, fine, old man,” Taako groaned, and cast the spell again. He turned, readying the spell again, expecting to see Barry.

Barry was not behind him. He did a double take and turned again, blinking wildly. Magnus stared at him awkwardly. 

“Are you… okay?” 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Taako insisted. “Where’d Barry go?”

Understanding flooded Magnus’s face and he pointed further down the cave. 

Man, Taako needed to work on his passive perception, he thought, before following Barry. 

The fighter in question (was he even a fighter?) was standing at the edge of a spring of water, examining the crystal hanging from the ceiling above. Taako rolled his eyes and tapped his wand against his shoulder, startling him as the slime suddenly disappeared. 

“Jeez, Taako, where’d you come from?”

“A simple ‘thanks’ would work better.”

Barry laughed, looking back at the crystal. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” Taako said, and pushed him. Barry yelped and managed to grip Taako’s wrist, sending them both splashing into the cool water.

Taako broke the surface with a breathless laugh, shoving Barry’s shoulder. 

“You _dick_!” 

Barry wiped at his glasses, laughing. “You’re the one that pushed me!”

“You weren’t supposed to pull me in _with_ you! I look like a drenched rat now!”

Rapid footsteps approached. “What happened? I heard a scream!” Magnus skidded to a halt at the water’s edge. He raised an eyebrow.

“He pulled me into the water!” Taako complained. 

Magnus’ face brightened. “Pool party!” he shouted, and hoisted a protesting Merle into the air, tossing him in the water, before leaping in himself. 

Taako grinned, but his face fell as static crawled over the edges of his vision. Suddenly he was somewhere else-- a beach, maybe, with bright white sand and turquoise waters. 

He was sitting on a board of wood, talking to someone-- teasing them over something?-- before there was a shout off to his left. He turned his head just in time to watch someone being thrown into the water with a large splash and a curse. 

Taako laughed, and the person beside him shouted in delight. _Nice one, Maggie_ , he meant to call out, but when he went to inhale, he couldn’t-- he tried to gasp, but suddenly there was no air--

“Easy, easy,” murmured a familiar voice, and someone was rubbing up and down Taako’s back as he expelled water from his lungs.

Taako’s entire body trembled as he coughed and gasped and heaved. Someone else was there, helping him to not buckle under his own weight, holding his hair back. Taako continued to cough and retch, his entire body moving with the weight of it, fingers bending and flexing over the ground as he tried to regain awareness and control of his body.

“What--” he choked.

“You went straight under,” said someone-- Barry-- who Taako now noticed watching him with pursed lips and worried eyebrows, wringing his hands together and ducking his head to get a better look at Taako’s face. “No warning. I don’t-- I don’t know what--”

“Was there a dropoff?” Magnus murmured from beside him. “Do you not know how to swim, Taako?”

“I--” Taako cut off suddenly, a choked exhale forcing itself out of him, and he shuddered over, Magnus and Barry’s arms keeping him from collapsing face-first on the cave floor as he regained his balance. “I know how to swim,” he insisted hoarsely. His throat burned.

“Can you breathe?” Magnus worried, as Merle flipped through his spellbook.

Taako nodded. “Let me--”

Magnus supported him as he pushed himself up, struggling to sit upright.

“Don’t talk too much, yet,” Merle said. “I just need… this one, I think.” He placed a hand on Taako’s forehead and murmured a spell. Taako wrinkled his nose at the contact but nearly slumped back over in relief as the magic worked through him, vanishing the pain and heaviness in his chest.

“What happened?” Magnus asked, loosening his hold on Taako but not yet letting go completely.

“Evil magic pool tried to kill me, homie,” Taako offered, giving one last cough for good measure.

“Did it… actually?” Barry asked, exchanging a glance with Merle. “Did you feel something drag you under?”

Taako frowned, getting a little frustrated. “I… no,” he said. “I mean, I don’t--” he sighed and looked to Barry for help. “You remember what we talked about? On the wagon?”

“The deja vu?” Barry asked.

“It was like that times ten.” Taako shifted, pulling out of Magnus’s hold. “Like. When Magnus threw Merle into the water, I just…” he shook his head, glancing around the floor. “Where’s my wand?” he muttered distractedly.

“It was bad enough to make you pass out?” Barry prodded further, handing him the wand. Taako took it and used Prestidigitation to dry himself off, sighing and shaking his hair out with his fingers.

“I don’t know. I got, like… a feeling of a memory. I could see it, but I…” he shook his head. “I don’t know. There was a beach, maybe? It was weird.”

“Hey, so. Cool and fun thing, here. Merle and I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Magnus said cheerily.

“Oh,” said Barry. “Sorry, yeah, I… sorry.” He pinched the bridge of his nose under his glasses. “Uh. How do we…?”

“Me ‘n Barry get hardcore deja vu sometimes,” Taako explained. “Not… really deja vu, but?” He shrugged. “Deja vu.”

“Okay,” said Magnus, slowly. “And that’s why you almost drowned just now?”

Taako laughed bitterly. “I don’t… I don’t know! I don’t know how to explain it. I was standing in the water, and then I… remembered something? Or.” He floundered, grasping air as he tried to find the right words for what he’d just experienced. “ _Felt_ something. And then I came back from it and Magnus’s beefy arms were coddling me while I threw up water.” The smile he directed at Magnus was really more of a grimace. “Let’s do it again sometime.”

“So you passed out,” Merle guessed.

“I-- I guess?”

“Okay,” said Barry. “Well. How about we take it easy for a second? There’s no rush to--”

“To save my dear cousin from impending doom? Nice, Bluejeans.”

“That’s not what I--” Barry cringed. “Look, I just think--”

“No, he’s right,” Taako said, grasping Magnus’s shoulder in order to push himself up. He wobbled for a second, and Magnus was quick to grab him, but Taako gently pushed his hand away and brushed himself off. “We got a job to do, bubbleh.”

Barry glanced around, from Merle to Magnus to Taako. “Are you sure?” he asked, shoulders slumping. His face was still creased with concern.

Taako nodded. “I’m sure. All healed up, see?” He spread his arms and twirled on his heel. “Don’t even sweat it.”

Barry still seemed unsure.

“We’ll keep an eye on him,” Magnus muttered to him, leaning past Taako, who rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, fine. Hold my hand if you must,” he said, reaching for Magnus, who smiled and linked their arms.

“It’s a buddy system!” Merle claimed.

“If you faint again, I can just throw you over my shoulder,” Magnus assured Taako, who opened his mouth, hesitated, and then closed it.

“...Sure,” he uttered. “I’m swooning.”

“We should go,” Barry pointed out. “If we aren’t taking a break. Time’s ticking.”

“Everyone peachy?” Merle asked.

“Peachy,” Magnus and Taako responded in unison. Barry nodded once.

“Let’s go, then,” he said, shifting his bag over his shoulder.

The quartet descended further into the cave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments and Kudos are super appreciated!!
> 
> Massive massive thanks to my beta reader, Anna! She wrote the bit past the memory! (Isn't her writing great?)


	4. An Old Red Robe

A giant crossbow in his face was not how Taako had thought the rest of his day would go.

He also didn’t think he would hear someone talk in garbled static. So, really, the surprises kept coming.

He blinked a few times, narrowing his eyes at the orc wielding the crossbow. She said something staticky again, but it was a little easier to make out this time— three words, barely audible or understandable underneath the static. It was less that he _heard_ the words and more that he knew them, somehow, recalled their meaning through the fog in his mind.

“Are you here for the ‘Phoenix Fire Gauntlet?’”

He swallowed nervously, ears flicking downward. Whatever that thing was, the name of it left a sour taste in his mouth. He glanced at his new friends. Confusion swept across their faces as they shared bewildered glances, until Merle stepped forward and cleared his throat, adopting a confident stance.

“No, ma’am! We are not KSHHHH hunters!” he said, trying his best to imitate the static. The orc woman raised a brow, lowering her crossbow just a fraction of an inch.

“That was— that was just, uh, weird crackles, so that tells me all I need to know.” She nodded, more to herself than them.

“So,” she declared, “I will not shoot you with my giant crossbow.”

They breathed a collective sigh of relief.

“Buuut,” she continued, drawing the word out, “I can’t have you following me, so…” She shrugged, lowering her crossbow all the way, and grabbed a remote from her belt, tapping the red button with an audible click. She slammed the door shut as she ran away.

The room shook, a loud, groaning rumble echoing throughout, and the grinder in the center of the room shuddered to life, gears screeching and clanging together.

Taako spun around and slipped his wand into his hand with one fluid motion. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Magnus grabbing his axe and shield, Merle flipping his bible open, and Barry… doing whatever Barry did. Taako didn’t even know what Barry’s class was, to be honest.

The machine rumbled forward, using its supports as makeshift legs. It paused for a moment, before lunging at Taako with surprising speed.

Magnus grabbed Taako before he had time to react, pulling them both away from the grinder. It bolted past and then stuttered to a halt.

Taako pulled out of Magnus’s hold with a quiet ‘thanks,’ brushing himself off before aiming his wand at the animated machine. It glowed a brilliant blue, brighter than before, crackling with electricity.

Acting on pure instinct, Taako cast the spell, pulling on the strings of magic that weaved through the world, and brilliant white lightning struck from his wand, sending the machine crashing into the wall.

His eyes widened and he lowered his arm as Magnus cheered, the machine trying to bring itself up in spasmodic movements.

That spell was a lot more powerful than anything Taako would’ve expected. He swallowed, realising he didn’t actually know the spell he’d cast, realising he’d done it by instinct, without thought.

He sure as hell wasn’t a sorcerer, so how the hell did he cast a spell he’d never learned?

He was pulled out of his bewildered thoughts by a shout, just in time to see Magnus leap away from the machine’s snapping jaws, grabbing a low-hanging chain from the ceiling and throwing it into the machine’s grinder.

With loud clangs and screeches, the spinning metal teeth ground to a halt and the machine stilled, collapsing with a loud bang.

“Hell yeah!” shouted Magnus, pumping a fist into the air and high-fiving Merle with his other hand. Taako grinned, glancing at Barry, who grinned back and held out his fist for a fist bump. Taako obliged, tucking his wand back into his belt.

They climbed onto the ledge the orc woman had stood on with ease. Magnus clicked his tongue disapprovingly at the sorry state of the door. It fell off its hinges as soon as they tried turning the handle, which fell off too.

 _She really knows how to slam doors,_ Taako thought. He stepped over the collapsed door, into yet another tunnel. The others followed, Magnus attempting gingerly to place the door back onto its hinges. It fell back down immediately.

Before he could try again, a shout rang out from down the tunnel. He recognised it as the orc woman, shouting for their help.

“I’m not helping her,” he said immediately.

Magnus turned to him, looking vaguely offended. “But she needs help!”

“She just tried to kill us!” Taako argued.

“Lots of people have tried to kill us!”

“That’s irrelevant,” Taako pointed out. “And also, we never ended up saving them from, like, monsters or some shit!”

Barry cleared his throat, holding up a finger. “I’m all for not saving the murder-happy lady from inevitable doom, but we still need to head down that tunnel to get Gundren.” He pointed further into the tunnel. “Also, Merle wandered in there while you were arguing, so…”

Taako grimaced and began walking, hesitantly, down the tunnel, a pleased Magnus following him. Barry laughed, shaking his head, before following.

They emerged into a spider-web covered cavern with a gaping hole in the center of the floor. Dozens of stalactites hung from the ceiling, flakes of faintly glowing crystals shimmering in the torchlight. Webbed to one of the stalagmites rising from the floor was the orc woman that tried to kill them via an animated grinding machine. Standing near her was a tall and thin drow with a long white braid, confidently gripping a black staff in one hand, examining his nails on the other.

He grinned as he noticed the party enter the room, flicking his braid off of his shoulder and stepping forward, the clicking from his staff echoing in the mostly-empty chamber.

“Ah, guests! Hello, hello! Welcome to my cave!” he said. “Who are our guests, may I ask?”

“I’m Magnus Burnsides!”

“Merle Highchurch.”

“Barry Bluejeans?”

“Taako, and can I just say how nice it is to see another elf with that diction?”

“You sound like a cultured man yourself!” the elf exclaimed, pleasantly surprised. “Where did you study?”

“Uh, New Elfington,” Taako lied.

“I’m… not familiar.”

“It was built on the ruins of Old Elfington,” Taako explained, “which we burned down cause we couldn’t figure out why it was called Old Elfington.”

The drow blinked a few times, cocking his head to the side. Taako didn’t give him any more time to think about it.

“Anyways, my good man, who might you be?” he prompted.

The drow flashed another dazzling smile, swishing his spider-emblazoned black tabard. “Do I really need to be introduced?”

The four stared at him blankly.

“Spider-man?” Barry guessed, rubbing the back of his head, glancing around the room nervously.

The drow huffed out an annoyed breath, gesturing wildly to the spider on his clothes. “You know, there’s a spider on my black tabard?”

“Oh!” Merle shouted. “You’re the Black Spider!”

“Exactly! You guessed it, congratulations!” Black Spider leaned on his staff. “That’s not my Christian name, though,” he added.

“I— can I ask what your Christian name is? ‘The Black Spider’ is great and all, but it’s a bit of a mouthful.”

“Oh, it’s Magic Brian, darling.” He paused. “Not the darling part, though, just Magic Brian. With an I.”

“Fantastic,” Taako said. “So, Magic Brian, this is a lovely cave you’ve got here, but we really should be on our way, after getting what we came here for. If that’s alright with you?”

“What are you here for?”

“The dwarf, uh, Gundro—”

“Gundren.”

“—Rockseeker.”

Magic Brian brightened. “Oh, of course! I’m assuming that’s the one that’s still alive, yes?”

Merle’s expression soured. “Yes. My cousin.”

“Yes, you can leave right with him. I do need some more of his blood, though.”

“How much—” Merle cleared his throat, “How much more blood?”

Magic Brian thought for a few moments, tapping a finger on his chin. “A few pints, I think? How much blood do dwarfs have, anyways?”

Merle rolled up his sleeves, narrowing his eyes. “That’s not gonna work for us, buddy.”

His face fell. “Oh, such a pity. We were getting along so well too!” he said, and flicked his fingers in Taako’s direction. Three bright white bolts materialised, shooting towards him.

Taako didn’t have any time to react before he was being pulled out of the way with a harsh tug. He stumbled and looked up to see Barry watching him, head cocked. His fingers were gripping his arm.

“You alright?” Barry worried.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Taako said, pulling away and twirling his wand into his hand fluidly, taking a step backwards. He was powerful, sure, but he sure as hell couldn’t take a hit.

Magic Brian frowned, seemingly disappointed at the miss, before brightening and flipping his staff upside down. He slammed the orb on top against the floor, shattering it and releasing puffs of white smoke.

“Bryan!” Magic Brian shouted, whistling as if he were calling a dog. Loud scuttling and tapping noises sounded from above them, and when Taako looked up, a giant spider was curled around a stalagmite, staring straight at them, eyes and fangs glinting.

He heard Magnus curse under his breath and then the spider— Bryan— leapt from stalactite to stalactite smoothly, before landing behind them with a loud crash and blocking the exit.

Magnus, Merle, and Barry stumbled, but Taako managed not to, running towards the orc woman instead. She might’ve tried to kill them, but he’d rather deal with a wooden, flammable crossbow than a giant magic spider. Spreading his hands, thumbs still touching, he cast Burning Hands, easily sculpting the flames around the orc without a second thought. (He didn’t think about the fact that, as a transmutation specialist, he’d never actually learned spell sculpting.)

She rubbed her wrists warily, kicking her crossbow into her hands.

“What’s your name?” Taako asked.

“Really?” she snapped. “We’re in the middle of a fight and you ask my name? Do you want me to tell you my grandmother’s cookie recipe, too?”

“I figured the other three had it handled.” Taako shrugged. “And yes, I do want that recipe.”

She scowled. “I’m Killian. Can we get back to the fighting now?”

Taako stepped aside and waved her on. “Not stopping you.”

There was a loud squish and a screech, and Taako turned just in time to see Magnus kick Bryan the spider into the pit enthusiastically, axe now splattered with spider blood.

Magic Brian cried out, reaching an arm out towards the pit, before spinning around and aiming his partially-broken staff at Taako. Again. White and black energy circled around the tip of the staff and Taako acted on instinct. He flicked his wand at himself, and blinked.

When he opened his eyes again, everything was cast in shades of grey. He could see Magic Brian’s confused face, charged spell sputtering out as he stopped concentrating on it.

Magnus was staring at the spot he’d just been standing in (still technically _was_ in), mouth wide open. He looked at Barry and pointed to the spot. Barry just put his hands up and shrugged, as if to say, ‘wasn’t me.’

Taako blinked back into the material plane a few feet away. He could think about the fact he’d just travelled into another plane later, and for now held his wand aloft.

“Hey, Brian!” he shouted. “Abraca-fuck-you!”

Brilliant blue and purple energy shot out of his wand, slamming into Magic Brian with ease, sending him toppling backwards to the edge of the pit, near Gundren’s unconscious body.

Brian braced himself on his arms, brushing stray locks of hair away from his battered face. “Well,” he said, “it looks like I’ve been… outnumbered, eh?” He looked around and a small smirk spread across his face. “I still have another thing, though,” he said, and grabbed the dwarf next to him, and rolled them both over the edge of the pit.

“Oh, fuck!” Merle shouted, rushing forward. He skid to a halt as a pair of calloused dwarven hands clasped over the pit’s ledge. Soon, another pair of hands also appeared, and two identical dwarfs pulled themselves out of the pit.

They stared at each other for a few long moments, and then the one on the left ran a hand through his hair, looking at Merle.

“Okay, I see what he’s trying to do here,” he said, his voice even gruffer than it had been the last time Taako had heard him. “Look, I’m the real Gundren! You can ask me anything about my clan, my family, uh, about dwarfs. You’ve gotta believe me!” he insisted.

The party of four, in sync, turned their expectant gazes to the Gundren on the right.

He cleared his throat theatrically, and, with a deep breath and a shitty German accent, said, “No! I am the real Gundren! I can tell you anything about… me!”

The five stared at Magic Brian for a long moment. Killian sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose and muttering something under her breath.

Without a word, Magnus shrugged and stepped forward, gently kicking the impostor into the pit behind him.

“Oh no!” Brian shouted, voice fading as he fell. “You have solved my final riddle! You are the riddle masters!” There was a loud thump. “Oh, I’ve landed on Bryan. He’s not as soft as I thought.” It was silent for a moment.

Barry peeked over the edge of the pit. “Is he dead yet?” he whispered loudly.

“Oh, I think I am dying!” Magic Brian lamented. “I can see my family—”

Taako leaned over Barry’s shoulder and cast magic missile into the pit. There was a yelp and a curse, and then silence.

Taako waited a moment before pushing away. “If he’s not dead after that, I’ll eat my fucking hat,” he said, already tucking his wand away.

“What if he’s a lich?” Barry suggested, still staring down into the blackness with a troubled expression.

Taako didn’t spare him a glance. “That counts as dead.”

Barry frowned. “No, it doesn’t.”

“So if I beef it right now, it’s not added to my death count?” Taako challenged, finally stopping to look at Barry, hand on his hip.

“You’re not a fucking lich, and it still counts as dying,” Barry countered, finally turning his head in order to glare at Taako. “Just because you don’t _stay_ dead--”

“You very much _do_ stay dead!” Taako exclaimed. “Just in a-- a different way!”

“It’s literally called ‘being undead,’ which is ‘not dead!’” said Barry, exasperated.

Merle cleared his throat awkwardly. “So…”

Barry and Taako looked over at him in sync, both pointedly ignoring Killian’s quiet “What the fuck?”

“Are we gonna continue on?” Merle asked, jerking his thumb to the side. “Or...?”

“Not until _Barold_ admits that I’m right!” Taako shot, crossing his arms.

Barry huffed. “But you’re not!”

Killian groaned. “I will literally pay you to stop talking about liches.”

“Deal!” they said in unison.

Together, the six continued on into the next room.

It was dimly lit, enchanted lanterns sending light flickering uncertainly across the ground. Pillars of stone supported the ceiling, and across the room was a giant vault door, framed by elaborately carved pillars.

And in the shadow of the pillar, curled up against it and the wall, was a figure in a bright red robe.

Taako’s breath caught and he grabbed Barry’s arm, feeling his heart pound furiously, static crawling at the edges of his vision.

Barry’s question died in his throat as he saw what-- _who--_ Taako was looking at. 

Taako dragged Barry towards the figure, barely registering Gundren’s monologue about his family.

He hesitated a few feet away, scared to go close enough to see the figure’s face. They weren’t moving, weren’t reacting, weren’t _breathing._

Frustration bloomed in Taako’s gut, angry and bitter, and he didn’t know _why._

Barry sighed as he came to the same conclusion Taako had, patting him on the shoulder. After a moment of hesitation he turned away and joined the rest of the party, leaving Taako alone with a dead body.

Taako stepped closer, crouching low enough to see under the hood. All that looked back at him was a bleach white skeleton. He reached out, static ringing in his mind, and grabbed the cloak, fingers bunching up the familiar red fabric. 

The skeleton turned to dust as he did, startling him, and an umbrella clattered to the floor. Just like that, Taako was left holding a dead person’s red robe and an umbrella. Dread filled him as he saw the blood staining the tear in the back of the uniform-like robe.

Slowly, he shrugged it on. It fit perfectly--- _but of course it did,_ he thought, and then there was nothing but static.

And slowly, through the static, an image emerged; it was blurry, and difficult to hold onto, but he forced himself to do so anyway. He thought of the brilliant red of the cloak, the distorted words on the colourful badge on the front, and the image clarified, just barely, but he could see it now.

Taako was standing next to someone he could barely see through the static. He said something to them-- to _her_ \-- and she laughed. He handed her his wand. For a moment, he was confused; Taako never trusted anyone with his wand, his weapon, his only means of defending himself. And then the confusion flickered out. _This was someone he would never fight. He trusted her with his wand, his life, everything._

And her name was _Lup._

The memory sputtered out as someone called his name, and there was a hand on his shoulder. Taako’s vision cleared, and Barry was standing next to him again, concern evident on his face. 

Taako shrugged his hand off and grabbed the umbrella, which came alive, glowing brilliantly and shooting lightning around him. 

He didn’t know who he was looking for still, or who _Lup_ was, but he was closer now.

He had a name, a memory, a _person,_ all things he hadn’t had before, and he was closer to finding who he was looking for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments and Kudos always appreciated!  
> Also, massive credit to my beta and co-creator, Anna!!


	5. Phandalin

Barry blinked a few times, bewildered, before looking at Taako slowly. “Are you, uh. Are you good?”

Taako grinned, his mind clearer than it had been the whole journey, and leaned on the staff. “Yeah, I’m great! I got a magic umbrella!”

Barry shrugged and smiled, partly in amusement and partly in relief that his friend was alright. “Can’t say I’ve seen one of those before.”

“I’m just one of a kind,” Taako said with a wink. Barry laughed, and the two of them turned to the rest of the group. Magnus and Merle looked mildly impressed by the show of lightning, but somehow unsurprised. Killian and Gundren, however, had their mouths hanging open.

“What the fuck is _with_ you guys?” Gundren asked, gesticulating wildly with his hands.

Merle patted him on the shoulder. “You’ll get used to it. Probably.” He paused. “Actually, probably not, knowing you.”

Killian just sighed, and then gestured to the back of the cave. “Is there any chance we can, like. Go? And not open the vault that was hidden deep in a dangerous cave for a  _ reason?”  _ she asked.

Gundren stepped forward and placed his hand on the vault door defensively, glaring at Killian.

She sighed. “Well, I guess that answers that question.”

Her eyebrows furrowed slightly in concern and she reached for her crossbow as the vault door shuddered, and began to creak open, pulleys and gears straining loudly.

Inside of the vault, it was dark.

Dread filled Taako. Gundren stepped forward, and then paused as a gentle  _ plink  _ sounded.

Slowly, Taako moved forward, coming close enough to see inside the vault with his dark vision. He couldn’t see far inside, but he did notice one thing: the walls, floor, and ceiling were all made of black glass.

Gundren pushed past Taako, not picking up on his horror. A gentle lavender light bloomed next to Taako, and Merle appeared beside him.

“Are you okay, Taako?” he asked.

Taako shook his head. “This gives me a bad feeling.”

“Yeah, me too, bud.”

They continued further into the vault, the only sounds being the rustle of their equipment and the horrible plinking noise from their footsteps on the glass. Merle waved his hand and the lavender light brightened, illuminating the entire room. It was empty, all except for one charred, dwarven figure in the center, arm raised, covered in a faintly glowing golden gauntlet.

Inexplicably, Taako felt as if he’d just been punched in the stomach. He was vaguely aware of Gundren ranting on about something beside him, waving his hands around angrily. Magnus patted him on the shoulder--

\--and then ran at the gauntlet and  _ fucking  _ high fived it. Fire flared to life between his palm and the gauntlet, and he jumped back, cradling his hand.

Magnus winced. “Worth it.”

Barry snorted at him. Merle sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, and Taako laughed for a moment before faltering as static crawled over his vision once again.

This time, he wasn’t outside. He was sitting on a couch, jotting down equations and drinking something from a mug. Taako looked up at the sound of footsteps and saw--  _ Lup, _ her face was obscured by static but it  _ had _ to be her, he could  _ feel  _ it-- chewing on a pen and balancing a mug and an open book between both hands as she walked carefully towards him.

She glanced up as the door slammed open and someone began running towards her, yelling,  _ “Incoming!” _

Lup spit the pen out and threw the book and coffee, and gave this second figure the hardest double high five Taako had ever seen. She clutched her stinging hands, laughing out, “Worth it!” as spilt coffee pooled around her feet and soaked her socks.

Someone else entered the room, a short figure holding his own coffee. Taako laughed as the man immediately turned and left upon noticing the scene, taking a long sip from his mug and flipping off the laughing trio.

Taako blinked a few times, and the vision— _ memory _ —was gone. He eased his hold on the umbrella, which he realised he had been gripping in a white-knuckled hold.

He wanted to remember who Lup was.

He  _ missed _ her.

He was snapped out of his thoughts by the clicking sound of Killian loading her crossbow.

“Okay,” she said. “No one else is allowed to touch that thing. It is  _ extremely  _ dangerous.”

“It definitely doesn’t like high fives!” Magnus exclaimed, flapping his hand to try and ease the burn. Merle rolled his eyes and waved his hand over Magnus’s, magically fading the burn.

“Let me try again!” Magnus said, slowly rearing his hand back before Merle slapped it back down.

Killian sighed, exasperated. “Did you hear me when I said no touching?”

Gundren inched closer to the gauntlet. Panic shot through Taako and he stepped back, grabbing Barry’s arm and tugging him backwards.

“Why should we listen to an orc like you?” Gundren said, eyes remaining fixed on the gauntlet.

“Because  _ I _ know the  _ damage _ that thing can cause—”

“The damage doesn’t matter,” Gundren interrupted, not looking away from the gauntlet, still inching closer.

“Gundren,” Killian said, aiming her crossbow at him, “step away from—”

“It’s rightfully mine!” he snarled, and lunged for the gauntlet.

Everything was quiet for a moment, as if the world was bracing itself for the consequences of this action, and then Gundren  _ screamed _ .

Flames burst out around him, enveloping him completely, and the shot from Killian’s crossbow turned to ash as soon as it got close. The glass below Gundren began to melt.

Taako stumbled back further, still clutching onto Barry, ears pressed down and eyes wide. Magnus and Merle stepped back too, shielding their eyes from the brilliant flames.

The screaming came to an abrupt stop.

“Well, he’s dead,” Barry muttered.

Taako shook his head, eyes settling on the figure in the center of the flames, hair swirling as if it, too, were fire; chest heaving with every breath.

The flames subsided, just enough to see Gundren clearly. His eyes, turned to twin flames, swept across the small group of adventurers.

“I’m done with this,” he growled, flying past them and out the door, leaving a trail of ash behind him.

Everyone was silent for a moment, before Killian sighed.

“That was really shitty,” she said. “Great job, you four.”

“Hey! What were we supposed to do about the dwarven fireball?” Barry protested.

“Are we going after him?” Magnus asked, eager, already halfway out the door.

"Of course we are; he's got our money!" Taako exclaimed, following Magnus as he rushed out. He could hear Merle's footsteps behind them and Killian's exasperated sigh as she followed.

They made their way out of the cave with no issues, getting out faster than they’d gotten in. All along the way, there was a singed path following where Gundren had been.

Once they were out and breathing fresh air, it was clear that Gundren hadn't cooled down on his trek out of the cave, and had instead gotten more riled up-- The burnt mess he left behind was bigger, still smoking in areas; the faint glow of embers visible in others.

They made awkward small talk as they followed Gundren's path with their wagon, much too small for two humans, an elf, a dwarf and an orc. Killian was visibly uncomfortable with the close quarters, shoulders tense and knuckles white as she gripped her crossbow which she still refused to let go of, eyes shifting between her four strange companions. Magnus drove the cart, chatting with Merle, both laughing raucously every few moments. Barry lazily watched the road and scenery pass by, occasionally snorting at something the other two said and looking over, joking with them, letting them take that joke and bounce off of it into a whole other bit.

Taako watched them from his perch on top of the crates of supplies still in the wagon, ears flicking idly as he listened, grinning at them and adding on to a bit whenever the opportunity arose.

It was strange, how unguarded he was with these strangers. Even more strange was how he found he didn't mind at all. Didn't want to put his walls back up. At least, not completely.

At the end of the singed road they were following was a town-- Phandalin, Taako guessed. The road was a little bit torn apart; a few street lamps were on fire, though no houses were. The streets were deserted. Everyone seemed to have gotten the (very correct) idea that going outside with a flaming pissed off dwarf on the loose was a bad idea.

The only building that was on fire was a tavern, though Taako wasn't sure why Gundren fixated on that building in particular. Weird guy.

A part of the roof collapsed as they got near, crashing to the floor. The flames flared, and the nearest building caught fire. Magnus rushed forward, but before he could get far, Barry's hand was gripping his arm.

"What are you doing?" he asked, pulling him back.

Magnus glanced at Barry, then back at the burning buildings. "There's people in there!"

"Whoever was in the tavern is probably dead!" Barry cried.

Magnus shoved him off, frown deepening with determination. "We can't just leave them there!"

Barry bit his lip, hands twitching anxiously, and Taako couldn't tell if it was because he agreed or disagreed with Magnus’s exclamation. He didn't know why it bothered him, not being able to tell, but it certainly felt like something he  _ should _ know, like a word out of his reach. Some instinct that had slipped from his mind. He didn’t realize he’d been frowning at Barry until Merle grabbed his forearm, and asked, “Taako? What’s wrong?”

“Fuck, nothing,” Taako said, shaking his head to clear it. There were more pressing matters to deal with. “We, uh-- Barry’s right, Magnus. We need to dip, like, yesterday.”

“But---” Magnus started.

There was another loud crash as even more of the building collapsed, the fire roaring and climbing higher into the sky. A figure flew out of the flames, stopping in front of them. It was Gundren, still covered in flames, still wearing that glowing gauntlet.

“What are  _ you  _ doing here?” he asked, voice so raspy that the words were almost unintelligible. 

“We’re here to stop you!” Magnus shouted, grabbing his axe. 

“Stop me? Why would you want to do that?” Gundren laughed, the sound harsh and grating. “I can finally get rid of those damn orcs.”

“That-- that doesn’t seem like a good idea,” Barry warned, stepping backwards. 

Gundren glared at him, about to say something, when Merle stepped between them.

“Gundren,” he began gently, “Is that what you really want?” 

“Of course it is!” Gundren roared.

“Is it?” Merle pressed. “The only thing it’ll lead to is you getting burnt up, just like your father in that vault.”

“I can control it!” Gundren protested.

“Look at you,” Merle gestured first at him, and then to the flames around them, “You aren’t controlling any of this. Just take it off, and we can talk this out.”

For a moment, the fire flickered, before roaring back to life, stronger than before.

“I don’t  _ want  _ to take it off!” Gundren shouted.

“Maybe now is a good time to get out of here?” Barry asked, glancing at Taako and gesturing down the road.

“And go where? Main Street?” 

“We’re not leaving without the Gauntlet!” Killian snapped. 

“If we don't get out here right now, we're not leaving with our lives!" Taako pressed his ears down nervously, eyeing the quickly spreading flames, watching them jump from one building to another. People were starting to trickle out of their homes, trying to escape the fires while still avoiding the dwarven source.

Gundren stepped away from Merle, closing his eyes for a moment. When they opened, they were no longer simple flames-- Now they were burning twin suns, both furious and glaring at the group of adventurers.

"You're not leaving with your lives either way," he growled, holding his arms out, letting the flames gather around them. In the fires blazing around them now, having spread to all the buildings, Taako could see black glass marring the ground and walls, dripping from the buildings to what was once the paved cobblestone path.

Gundren's words spurred the small group into action. Killian swiftly loaded and shot her crossbow, shouting, "Get to the well!" repeatedly. With a start, the others stopped staring at the monstrosity that was once Gundren, and turned to run.

Magnus grabbed Taako and Merle's hands as they began running, stalling them for a few moments. He looked around at the town burning around him. "We have to get these people out of here!"

Taako pulled him forward, towards the well. "I think the flaming dwarf and burning buildings are warning enough for them to get out!"

"But--"

"Magnus," Merle started, pulling him towards the well also, "we need to go."

"We don't have a lot of time," Taako said, fighting the urge to let go of Magnus's hand and leave him behind. They might've been friends, but Taako put Taako first, and that wasn't going to change for an adventurer who was heroic to the point of being suicidal. Except, he wasn't running yet, was he? He was still waiting. He didn't know what to make of that.

Finally, Magnus stopped hesitating, letting them drag him forward to the town square. Taako let go of his hand as they paused in front of the well, looking over his shoulder at the carnage behind him. More and more of the town was being enveloped in fire. 

As he and the others jumped into the well, he was dimly aware of the fires reflecting in Magnus' and Merle's eyes, almost like embers in a dying campfire. Except this wasn't a campfire, and the embers were scattered across the remains of homes and taverns and shops.

As they landed roughly at the bottom of the well, Killian's featherfall wearing off as they did, Taako realised he did not see Barry.

And then the world above the well was a sea of flames and smoke and screams, and a roaring, horrible, thundering noise, and as ash and sparks rained down upon them, they realised, distantly, that there was no way anyone could survive that. No way people could have gotten out of town in time.

They realised, distantly, and knew subconsciously, that they were the only living souls left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Comments and Kudos super appreciated!


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